More from a hot, sunny day in Beaune...

One of the first things I do when I arrive in Beaune every trip is to stop in at Athenaeum and see if there are any Burgundy books (I probably have enough to start my own library. It’s an addiction, I know…) I was thrilled this time to find “The Original Grand Crus of Burgundy” by Charles Curtis. Finally, someone has taken the time to translate all of the pertinent stuff from the classic tomes of Laval, Morelet, Courtépée and many others, to put together a fascinating overview of the climats (named vineyards) of Burgundy and how they were viewed from a quality perspective over the last few hundred years. I have all of the originals in French (some of which are in old French, which can be a bit of a minefield for non-native speakers) – so this is a great find. Thorough, coherent, well-organized, and highly recommended.

I was amazed to find that there are 15-20+ new wine shops that have sprung up in Beaune recently. Seemingly every other store front is now a wine shop, which has never been the case here. There were always a few, some great, most lousy, but now they are multiplying like rabbits. I will investigate over the course of the next week or so and see if any of the new arrivals are worth your time and money…

Love this new sculpture in the Place Carnot in Beaune – perhaps the first new piece of public art here for as long as I can remember…

Somebody with 12 rows of Pommard Chanlins 1er Cru is not taking any chances - they've got nets on their vines to protect against hail. Let's hope this guarantees there will BE NO HAIL this year!

Ready to kick-off my annual week-long Insider’s Tour of Burgundy tomorrow, with a great group of customers arriving shortly. We’ll kick it off with our traditional opening Sunday lunch at Chez Guy in Gevrey-Chambertin. May my stomach and liver stay strong throughout the week!